Barrel cooler



Mayv13 1969 lT. A. DONOVAN ETAL 3,443,397

BARREL COOLER Filed May 31, 1968 sheet of 2 May 13 1969 T. A. DNovAN ETAL 3,443,397

BARREL COOLER SheefI Filed May 3l, 1968 3,443,397 BARREL COOLER Thomas A. Donovan, Oakville, and William E. Miltenherger, Glendale, Mo., assignors to Anheuser-Busch, Incorporated, St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed May 31, 1968, Ser. No. 733,677 Int. Cl. B67d 5/ 62; F25d 3/02 U.S. Cl. 62-398 11 Claims ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE In the past, coolers for cooling barrels of beer, which actually are half-barrels and/ or quarter-barrels, have been made from rigid materials, usually metal. Quite often such a cooler is made from 55 gallon drums which are cut in two, provided with openings, coated on the inside, and painted on the outside. The conversion of 55 gallon drums into beer coolers is expensive and results in beer coolers which are rigid and which occupy valuable Warehouse space when not in use.

One of the principal objects of the present invention is to provide a barrel cooler which is inexpensive, pleasing in appearance, leakproof, and collapsible so that it may be stored in a small space or transported in collapsed condition. Another object is to provide a barrel cooler having outer and inner walls for receiving ice and cold water or other cooling material therebetween, there being a leakproof opening through the walls near the bottom thereof for receiving a faucet for drawing the contents from the barrel. Another object is to provide means for retaining the inner Wall of the container in an upright position so as to have a cooling space around the barrel which is as tall as the barrel itself. Another object is to provide convenient carrying means for carrying a barrel of beer.

These and other objects and advantages will become apparent hereinafter.

The present invention is embodied in a collapsible barrel cooler made from water impervious material, said cooler having inner and outer walls adapted to be positioned in spaced relation for receiving a coolant therebetween such as ice and water, said inner wall being adapted to be secured over the top of a barrel positioned therein to retain said inner wall in an upright position, said inner and outer walls having an opening therein near the bottom thereof for receiving a faucet for drawing off the contents from the barrel, said opening being leakproof so that no ice or water leaks out of the space between said walls.

The invention also consists in the parts and in the arrangements and combinations of parts hereinafter described and claimed. In the accompanying drawings which form part of the specification and wherein like numerals and letters refer to like parts wherever they occur:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a barrel cooler embodying the present invention with a barrel therein,

FIG. 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line 2 2 of FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken along the line 3 3 of FIG. 1,

nitecl States Patent O F 3,443,397 Patented May 13, 1969 ice FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the cooler with its circular top open to show a barrel within the inner container,

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing the inner container joined to the outer container,

FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line 6 6 of FIG. 5,

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line 7 7 of FIG. 4,

FIG. 8 is fragmentary enlarged view of the carrying handle on the outside of the outer wall, and

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary enlarged view of the reinforcements connected to the inside surface of the outer wall.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, it will be seen that the embodiment Aof the invention which has been illustrated comprises a barrel cooler C comprising an outer container 1 and an inner container 2 dimensioned to have a substantially upstanding annular space 3 therebetween for receiving ice and cold water, or other cooling means. The cooler C is made from a collapsible or foldable material which is a strong water impervious material, such as vinyl with nylon reinforcement therein. This material virtually eliminates tear propagation and is highly resistant to puncture and abrasions. One such suitable material is that sold by the Sun Chemical Corporation under the trademark Facilon 1412. This material iS available in pleasing colors and readily receives printing thereon for identifying the product in the barrel.

The inner container Z is dimensioned to receive a beer barrel B which is usually a so-called half-barrel or a quarter-barrel, since full barrels are not presently used in the brewing industry. A half-barrel is about 193/32 inches high, 171%; inches in diameter at its largest diameter, weighs about 159 pounds when lled with beer, and contains 1984 iiuid ounces of beer. A quarter-barrel is about 15%,2 inches high, 14% inches in diameter at its largest diameter, weighs about v82 pounds when filled with beer, and contains 992 iluid ounces of beer. Therefore, the material from which the cooler C is made must be strong, must have strong and conveniently positioned handles thereon, and must be capable of withstanding abuses, such as when persons on a picnic drop the cooler with the beer barrel therein from the trunk of an automobile or the platform of a truck or drag the cooler along the ground when full or when empty.

The outer container 1 comprises a circular bottom wall 4, a circular top wall 5, and an outer cylindrical wall 6 therebetween having a vertical seam 7' therein. The bottom wall 4 is secured to the outer wall 6 by stitching therearound which forms a seam 8 which is then heat sealed. The top wall 5 is secured to the top edge 9 of the cylindrical wall -6 by a horizontal hinge 10 about 10 inches long and by zipper means 1.1 which extend around the remainder of the juncture between the top wall 5 and the outer wall `6. A strip of material 12 about 10 inches long and 1 inch wide reinforces this hinge 410. The outer cylindrical wall 6 is provided with carrying means, such as the inverted U shaped handles 13 positioned 180 degrees apart. Each handle 113 has an upper portion 14 above the outer wall 6 and lower portions 15 stitched to the outer wall 6 with a long horizontal reinforcement strip 16 intersecting said lower portions 15 and extending laterally beyond said lower portions 15 a distance about equal to the distance between said lower portions 15. The handles 13 are made from the same material as the cooler and are further reinforced with vertical and horizontal nylon fabric strips 15a and .16a sewn on the inside surface of the outer wall 6 in registering relation with the lower portions 15 of the handles 13 and the horizontal reinforcing strip 16.

The circular top wall 5 is made in two halves 5a and 5b which overlap a distance of about 1A inch along a diametral seam 17 which preferably is at right angles to a line between the handles 13. The two halves 5a and 5b are stitched together over a major portion of their area of overlap, but are not stitched at a point inwardly from the ends thereof so as to form a slit 18 of overlapping material of about 6 inches in length. This slit 1,8 is positioned so as to be over the top valve in a conventional beer barrel B.

The inner container 2 comprises an upstanding inner cylindrical wall 19 which is taller in height than the outer wall 6, so as to have an upper portion 20 adapted to be folded over the top wall of a beer barrel B. The inner wall 19 has a top edge 21 at the top of a folded over and stitched portion 22 which has grommets or eyelets 23 therein for receiving heavy string or rope 24. The inner wall 19 has a vertical seam 25 secured to the vertical seam 7 of the outer wall 6 with slanted edges 26 extending upwardly therefrom which form a cutout portion 27 so that the upper portion 20l of the inner wall 19 can be more conveniently folded over the top surface 2K8 of the beer barrel B without unnecessary overlapping of material. When this is done, the string 24 extending through the eyelets 23 is pulled tight and tied, thereby retaining the inner wall 19 in an upright position. The vertical seam 25 of the inner container 2 is coextensive with the vertical seam 7 of the outer wall 6, the two seams 7 and 25 being sewn together over the entire height of the outer wall 6 and terminating at their upper end at the hinge 10. The slanted edges 26 extend upwardly from this point. The bottom margin of the inner wall 19 is secured to the bottom wall 4 by stitching and by a heat seal around the periphery thereof which forms part of the lower seam F.

The lower portions of the outer wall 6 and the inner wall 19 are heat sealed and stitched together over an area 29 at the front 30 of the cooler C, said area 29 having a vertical opening 31 therethrough. This opening 31 is opposite of the vertical seam 7 and is sufficiently large to receive a faucet 32 which may be inserted into the lower valve 33 of a beer barrel B for withdrawing beer from said barrel B. The opening 31 is leakproof so that no ice or Water may leak through the opening 31 from the space 3 between the outer and inner walls 6 and t19. When using tapping means which draws beer from the top 28 of the barrel B, the lower opening 31 may not be used at all, or in some instances may receive a fitting with an upwardly extending hose (not shown) which leads to a faucet 32 positioned above the barrel B. If desired, the front or any part of the outer surface of the outer wall 6 can be provided with a trademark or other indicia.

When the upper portion 20 of the inner container 2 is folded over the barrel B and tied with the string 24, the top edge 21 of the inner container 2 forms an opening 34 therethrough for receiving tapping apparatus which extends upwardly from the top vent of a barrel through the slit 18 in the circular top Wall 5.

In operation, when it is desired to utilize this cooler, the beer barrel is preferably cooled to the desired ternperature in the permanent refrigerator. Normally this temperature is 38 to 42 F. for beer. This conserves the ice or other cooling means within the cooler C, since none of said cooling means must be consumed to lower the temperature of the beer in the barrel. The cooling means, usually ice and water, simply retains the liquid at the proper cooled temperature. The properly cooled barrel B is placed upside down on the ground or on a horizontal surface. They empty cooler C is then turned upside down and the inner container 2 is slipped over the barrel B until the bottom wall 4 contacts the bottom of the barrel B with the lower valve 33 positioned adjacent to the opening 31. The barrel B and cooler C are then rotated 180 so that the top 23 of the barrel B and cooler C are in their normal positions (FIGSl l and 2). The upper portion 20 of the inner wall 19 is folded over the top 28 of the barrel B and secured thereto by drawing the string 24 together and tying it. This retains the barrel B in fixed relation against the bottom wall 4 and retains the inner wall 19 in an upstanding position. Ice or other cooling means are then inserted into the annular space 3 between the outer and inner containers 1 and 2. Additional ice can then be placed over the barrel B and the outer top wall 5 is then pivoted downwardly about the hinge 10 so that the zipper 11 can be closed or zipped around the periphery of the outer wall 6. The cooler C is then ready to be transported from its place of purchase to the picnic ground or other place where the beer will be consumed.

It has been found that this cooler will retain beer at about 36 for over 8 hours with about 20 pounds of ice when the outside temperature is 79 F. In some instances the beer temperature might rise about one degree or more when smaller amounts of ice are used or when the outside temperature is higher. However, this cooler C keeps the beer at substantially the desired beer temperature over an eight hour period, which is usually suicient time for withdrawing all or most of the beer from the barrel. The beer barrel B can be tapped in the usual manner by using the normal tapping apparatus which beer wholesalers have on hand for such purposes. Such tapping apparatus may include a fitting or a faucet 32 which tits through the lower opening 31, and also, a fitting and/or faucet which fits vertically through the upper slit 18 in the top wall 5 and the opening 34 formed in the inner Wall 19. If desired, a hose can be attached to the barrel B and run to conventional cooling coils in a beer drawing apparatus, should such be available and desired,

When the contents ofthe barrel B have been consumed, the tapping apparatus in the top of the barrel b can be removed upwardly through the slit 18, the faucet 32 can be removed from the lower valve 33 through the opening 31, the zipper 11 can be unzipped, the cover 5 pivoted to its open position (FIG. 5), and the ice and water dumped out by tilting the cooler C or turning the cooler C upside down. This will remove the cooling means from the annular space 3. The cooler C can then be used as a convenient carrying means for the empty or partially empty barrel B. To remove the barrel B, the string 24 is untied to open the inner container 2 so that the barrel may be lifted therefrom.

In collapsed or folded or rolled up condition, this cooler is' less than l0 percent of its height when filled (FIG. 1), which is about 21.5 inches for a half-barrel and 18.5 inches for a quarter-barrel. When purchased, these coolers are preferably packaged three in a carton whose dimensions are 17" x 17" x 4.5 for half-barrel coolers C and slightly smaller for quarter-barrel coolers C.

This invention is intended to cover al1 changes and modifications of the example of the invention herein chosen for purposes of the disclosure, which do not constitute departures from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A collapsible cooler made from water impervious material, said cooler having an outer container and an inner container, said outer container having an outer wall positioned between an outer top and a bottom, said outer container having carrying means thereon, said inner container having an inner wall, said inner wall being taller than said outer Wall and being adapted to be folded over the top of a barrel positioned within said inner container, means for retaining the upper portion of said inner wall over the top of said barrel t0 retain said inner wall in an upright position within said cooler, said inner and outer walls being secured together in leakproof relation near the bottom thereof over an area, said area having an opening therethrough, said inner and outer containers adapted to be positioned in spaced relation except at the bottom thereof thereby forming a space therebetween, said space being adapted to receive cooling means, said outer top having a slit therein adapted to receive tapping apparatus which extends into the top of a barrel, said opening in said area adapted to receive the faucet of tapping apparatus therethrough.

2. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein the space between the inner and outer walls is narrower near the bottom of the cooler than at the top of the cooler.

3. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein the outer wall and the inner wall have vertical seams which are secured together at a point opposite to the opening near the bottom of the cooler.

4. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein the inner wall has slanted edges extending upwardly from a point adjacent to the top of the outer wall so that the perimeter of the top of the inner wall is less than the perimeter of the top of the outer wall.

5. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein the upper portion of the inner wall when folded over the barrel and secured thereto retains the inner wall around its entire circumference in an upright position in substantial contacting relation with the upstanding wall of the barrel.

6. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein said carrying means comprises handles secured to the outer surface of said outer wall, said handles extending upwardly above the top edge of said outer wall, and wherein said outer wall has reinforcing strips attached to the inner surface thereof in registering relation with the lower portions of said handles.

7. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 6 wherein each of said handles has two lower portions which extend vertically -downwardly along the outer wall and are secured thereto, said lower portions being connected with a horizontally reinforcing strip which extends laterally beyond said lower portions.

8. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein the bottom and the inner and outer walls are connected by a leakproof seam around the bottom of the cooler, said seam being positioned out of contact with the horizontal portion of the bottom of the container, so that said seam does not rest upon the ground when the cooler is filled.

9. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein said cooler collapses to a height of about 10% of the height of the outer wall.

10. The collapsible cooler set forth in claim 1 wherein said top wall when opened can be pivoted rearwardly about the hinge between said top wall and outer wall to fully expose the contents within the cooler.

11. A cooled package for maintaining a liquid in a cool condition for hours comprising a barrel positioned within a collapsible cooler made from water impervious material, said cooler having an outer container and an inner container with ice and water therebetween, said outer container having an outer wall positioned between a top and a bottom, said outer container having carrying means thereon, said inner container having an inner wall and being adapted to be folded and maintained over the top of a barrel positioned within said inner container, said inner and outer walls being secured together in leakproof condition near the bottom thereof over an area, said area having an opening therethrough which is adapted to receive a faucet inserted into the bottom vent of said barrel, said top having a slit therein for receiving tapping apparatus, and securing means' maintaining said top over the contents within said outer wall.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 296,432 4/ 1884 Moebius 62-457 307,341 10/1884 Shaw 62-457 1,815,405 7/1931 Hewitt 62-464 3,308,636 3/1967 Schaaf 62-457 LLOYD L. KING, Primary Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 

